A man was killed and three others seriously injured in the resort town of Da Lat on Wednesday after being hit by a car driven by a senior official of the Lam Dong provincial government.

The accident happened at around 3:20 p.m. at the corner of Tran Phu and Le Hong Phong streets.

Witnesses said the seven-seat SUV of Mai Nam Duong, deputy director of Lam Dong Province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, was speeding when he lost control taking a curve and collided into three motorbikes on the other side of the street after smashing through a section of the center divider.

According to the witnesses, after crushing the three motorbikes, Duong's car crashed into a roadside tree and flipped over.

Duong, who suffered minor injuries to his head, was detained by local police for investigation. He was already set to retire in the next couple of months.

In an earlier accident on March 30, Le Ton Thanh, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism crashed his car into three cars and two motorbikes.

Two people who were driving the motorbikes were rushed to the hospital and discharged the same day.

Police said a breathalyzer analysis showed Thanh's blood alcohol content had been 0.2 milligrams of alcohol per air liter at the time of the crash. Vietnam has a zero tolerance policy for drinking while driving cars.

Thanh was fined VND5 million for illegal passing and drinking and driving, which led to the accident. His driver's license was suspended for two months and his SUV confiscated for 10 days.